A-League: Sydney FC’s must do and the question Brisbane Roar must ask
Why Sydney FC must go shopping, the big question which needs to be asked at a battling club and a decision to make for the Melbourne City boss. Socceroos great ROBBIE SLATER and MARCO MONTEVERDE dive in to The Tackle.
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Why Sydney FC must go shopping, the big question which needs to be asked at a battling club and a decision to make for the Melbourne City boss.
Socceroos great ROBBIE SLATER and MARCO MONTEVERDE dive in to The Tackle.
DEFENSIVE DEFICIENCIES
Sydney FC can forget about winning the A-League title if they don’t sign an experienced central defender during next month’s transfer window.
As good as the Sky Blues’ attack is, their defensive frailties continue to cost them wins.
The latest example was Friday night’s 3-3 draw Adelaide United at Coopers Stadium.
If not for the brilliance of Brazilian star Douglas Costa, the Sydneysiders would have lost for a fifth time in just eight A-League matches this season.
Adelaide would be kicking themselves for dropping points after leading 3-1 until the dying stages of the contest.
And while Sydney staged a fightback, it shouldn’t mask over the cracks of the club’s obvious defensive deficiencies.
The Sky Blues have already conceded 17 goals in the A-League this season. That’s far too many for a team that many tipped to be the team to beat in the 2024-25 campaign.
However, with the season still young, not all is lost for Sydney, but coach Ufuk Talay needs to bolster the heart of his defence.
In Hayden Matthews, Alex Popovic and Aaron Gurd, the Sky Blues have three promising, but young, centre-backs.
While 20-year-old Matthews recently made his Socceroos debut, he’s far from the finished product, and it was no surprise he was an unused substitute on Friday night.
Popovic, 22, is on a loan deal from Korean outfit Gwangju FC that ends next month, and the Sky Blues have made no indication on whether the loan will be extended.
Talay also has the option of shifting left-back Jordan Courtney-Perkins to his preferred role in the centre of defence, and using Joel King at left-back.
However, Courtney-Perkins is also only 22 and would also prosper by playing alongside an experienced centre-back.
Talay knew that it might be an issue ahead of the season, and tried to bring former Socceroos defender Trent Sainsbury to the club.
However, Sainsbury, who is currently sidelined with a pectoral muscle injury, instead chose to sign for the Central Coast Mariners on his return to Australia after 10 years of plying his trade overseas.
Following Sainsbury’s rejection of their offer, the Sydneysiders made the decision to sign Popovic on loan, hoping that a young crop of centre-backs would be enough.
However, it’s a move that has cost Sydney too many points, and it must be addressed in the transfer window.
It won’t be easy finding someone because the Sky Blues already have their full complement of five foreign players, none of whom are defenders.
Talay must therefore try to find an experienced Australian centre-back that’s available, a task easier said than done.
Former Socceroo Bailey Wright has previously been linked to Sydney, but the former Sunderland defender seems content in Singapore with the Lion City Sailors.
Ex-Sydney defender Aaron Calver, who is currently back in the Harbour City after a year with South Korean top-flight club Daejeon Hana Citizen, might be an option.
Socceroo Thomas Deng is another potential candidate with his contract at Japanese club Albirex Niigata having expired.
What’s essential is that Sydney acts quickly when the transfer market opens up next month to ensure that the defensive problems that are plaguing the team are quickly rectified.
TEST AWAITS AUCKLAND
Shock thrashing or a sign of what’s to come?
We’ll find out this Saturday when Auckland FC attempt to bounce back against Central Coast Mariners in Gosford after losing 4-0 at home to Western United.
Having been near perfect in an amazing start to A-League life, Auckland fell into a complete hole at Go Media Stadium against an extremely impressive Western United.
Take nothing away from United and their coach John Aloisi, who tactically dismantled the Black Knights.
The win also proved that United’s 4-3 away win the previous week over Sydney FC was anything but a fluke.
Two scalps in successive away games shows that United are not just in the competition to make up the numbers.
While confidence in the United camp is high, there is no doubt the previous air of near-invincibility that existed among Auckland’s contingent has taken a blow.
How the Black Knights respond against the Mariners will be fascinating.
While the Mariners are anything but the force they once were, playing in Gosford won’t be easy for the Black Knights, who will be desperate to prove that the nature of the loss to United was a one-off in terms of Auckland’s lacklustre effort, which would have coach Steve Corica fuming.
PLAYING FOR KEEPS
Another costly mistake from goalkeeper Patrick Beach will give Melbourne City coach Aurelio Vidmar plenty to think about ahead of his team’s New Year’s Eve clash with the Central Coast Mariners.
Having made a shocking handling effort that cost City a win against Auckland last weekend, Beach’s hands again let him down in City’s 1-1 derby draw with Melbourne Victory on Saturday night.
With City leading 1-0, youngster Beach dropped a second-half corner that allowed the Victory to equalise.
Vidmar has kept faith in Beach this season despite the presence of former A-League goalkeeper of the year Jamie Young in City’s squad.
However, Vidmar’s patience with Beach’s patchy form is surely wearing thin as City fight for a spot among the competition’s top few teams.
Beach’s mistake was part of a derby that didn’t live up to the hype, but at the very least generated a good atmosphere at AAMI Park, with a crowd of more than 24,000 in attendance.
ROAR A RABBLE
The Roar hit an all-time low on Saturday when they were beaten 1-0 at home by fellow strugglers Perth Glory in a dire match between the competition’s two worst teams.
Such was Brisbane’s insipid display, the question needs to be asked if embattled coach Ruben Zadkovich has lost the dressing-room.
Zadkovich maintains that he has the full support of Roar officials, but we don’t know because the club’s chief executive officer Kaz Patafta and head of football Zac Anderson refuse to comment publicly on the coach’s future.
There are many that believe that while the Bakrie Group remain owners of the Roar nothing will change, regardless of who is coaching the team and who is running the day-to-day operations of the club.
However, it’s up to Patafta and Anderson to make some tough decisions if the club is to avoid falling into such a downward spiral that there is no hope of recovery.
Team of the week (4-2-3-1)
Matt Sutton (Western United); Gabriel Cleur (Western Sydney Wanderers), Tomislav Mrcela (Perth Glory), Roderick Miranda (Melbourne Victory), Charbel Shamoon (Western United); Angus Thurgate (Western United), Dylan Scicluna (Western Sydney Wanderers); Douglas Costa (Sydney FC), Stefan Mauk (Adelaide United), Brandon Borrello (Western Sydney Wanderers); Archie Goodwin (Adelaide United). Coach: John Aloisi (Western United)Player of the week: Angus Thurgate (Western United)
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